Heuristic Evaluation Report on AirBlue.

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Summary.
This report contains a detailed heuristic evaluation of airblue.com. A balanced view of the Web
site, meaning positive and negative aspects of it are included that show Findings on ten points of
heuristic evolution is provided with some examples. Recommendations are made to improve usability of
the website. A few suggestions are also made that are not picked by heuristic evaluation but can be
useful to improve website usability.

Aim and purpose of the report.

The main aim and purpose of this report is to establish idea of better user interface by heuristic
evaluation for website of airblue (airline). All the aspects of good and bad design is included in
it by observing user errors and inferring their causes in usability defects. Also findings of a
detailed heuristic evaluation base on ten points is also discussed. Suggestions to improve
usability of website are also provided.

Findings.
Good and bad points regarding usability of the website are as follow.
o Bad points:
 No feedback option
 Not last update mention
 Language change option not provided
 Contents on home screen slider are not well described
o Good Points
 Information logically clear and easily understandable
 No broken links
 Resources are reliable
 Well describe Navigation within site.
Observation and evaluation of the degree to which this Heuristic has been satisfied is given
below. These points are evaluated out of 5 points. 0 means strongly dis-satisfied and 5 means
strongly satisfied.
1. Visibility of system status.
Website has average level of visibility for user. 3 out of 5 points are given for visibility of system
status. Some findings of visibility status are given below.
  Processing of different task is visible. E.g. searching of flights.
 Appropriate feedback is not provided. E.g. wrong inputs for different forms are not
prompted.
 Main menus are not eye-catching.
2. Match between system and the real world.
Website has a good level of match between system and the real world. 4 out of 5 points are
given for this. Some findings of Match between system and the real world are given below.

 Color combination of website is suitable for most of the users.

 Language used is quite a user friendly and matches to real world.
 Icons for menus are missing.
3. User control and freedom.
Website has a very good level of User control and freedom. 5 out of 5 points are given for this.
Some findings of User control and freedom are given below.

 Users often choose system functions by mistake. This website provides a clearly marked
"out/change/back" option to leave an unwanted state without having to go through an
extended dialogue. Also Supports undo and redo.
4. Consistency and standards.
Website has a good level of Consistency and standards. 4 out of 5 points are given for this.
Some findings of Consistency and standards are given below.

 Words, situations and actions are user friendly and are same for each case.
 Conventional approach is used.
 Only one point seems confusing in this website i.e. Booking and reservation
5. Error prevention.
Website has average level of error prevention. 3 out of 5 points are given for error prevention.
Some findings of error prevention are given below.

 Some Buttons used are not so appropriate to prevent errors.

 Notifications/messages are too long and difficult to understand.
6. Recognition rather than recall.
Website has a very good level of Recognition rather than recall. 5 out of 5 points are given for
this. Some findings of Recognition rather than recall are given below.

 Objects actions and options are visible and recognizable.

 There is no need to remember parts of information as same activity happens on same
page.
7. Flexibility and efficiency of use.
Flexibility and efficiency of use is not applicable on this website.
8. Aesthetic and minimalist design.
Aesthetic and minimalist design is not applicable on this website.

9. Help user recognize, diagnose and recover from error.

Website has a good level of Help user recognize, diagnose and recover from error. 4 out of 5
points are given for this. Some findings are given below.

 This website provides help user to recognize errors. And also provide recovery options.
 Error messages are expressed in simple language and clearly indicate the problems.
10. Help and documentation.
Website has average level of Help and documentation. 3 out of 5 points are given for Help and
documentation. Some findings of Help and documentation are given below.

 FAQs are provided but not enough for basic information.

 No feedback option is given.
 Live chat option is also not provided

Conclusion.
Heuristic evaluation of airblue.com resulted that its user interface is quite satisfied. As per
scoring level it got almost 80% of total. A few changes/upgradations are also necessary. But
overall it’s simple, elegant, understandable and realistic for both expert user and a first timer.

Recommendations.
A few deficiencies found in Heuristic evaluation are seen so some changes must be done.
Buttons and menus need improvement. Selection by date and day must be included in time
selection option during flight bookings. There must be eye catching colors/backgrounds for
menus. News feed should be automated and animated. Use of icons for different menus and
option can be affective. Language change option must be given on top of home page. Contents
on home screen slider must be well described, relevant and updated. A feedback option must
be provided. Last update must be mentioned on home page. Live chat to representatives is also
recommended.